The

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

''Separación Dominicana'' was the first and

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

vessel of the early Dominican Navy, which was formed in 1844. She saw action in the

Dominican War of Independence The Dominican War of Independence () was a war of independence that began when the Dominican Republic declared independence from the Republic of Haiti on February 27, 1844 and ended on January 24, 1856. Before the war, the island of Hispaniola ...

, including the notable Battle of Tortuguero.

History

During the

, after the February 1844 Dominican declaration of independence from

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

, Haiti responded with a blockade of all of the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

's ports in early March 1844. In the Battle of Tortuguero on 15 April 1844, Juan Bautista Cambiaso commanded the five-gun

''Separación Dominicana'' and two smaller schooners, decisively defeating a Haitian

brigantine A brigantine is a two-masted sailing vessel with a fully square-rigged foremast and at least two sails on the main mast: a square topsail and a gaff sail mainsail (behind the mast). The main mast is the second and taller of the two masts. Ol ...

and two schooners. As a result of the battle's outcome, Haitian president Charles Rivière-Hérard was ousted from power and Haitian naval operations against the Dominican Republic were suspended. On April 23, 1844, the Junta Central Gubernativa (Central Government Board) ordered that all three schooners be incorporated into the newly created Dominican Navy, and Commander Cambiaso was named admiral.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Separacion Dominicana Dominican War of Independence Schooners of the Dominican Navy 1840s ships